Australian rider Richie Porte won the Paris-Nice race after a dominant victory on the final time-trial stage on Sunday, while promising US rider Andrew Talansky showed his potential with a second-placed overall finish.
Porte was in the leader’s yellow jersey overnight and only needed to protect his lead. However, he attacked from the start and dominated his rivals on the uphill time trial, finishing a massive 23 seconds ahead of Talansky.
The 28-year-old Porte posted a time of 19 minutes, 16 seconds over the 9.6km from Nice to Col d’Eze, to become the first Australian to win the race.
“I can’t believe it, the first Aussie to win such a big race,” said Porte, who shook hands with Talansky as the American was warming down on a stationary bike. “It’s just an honor to have my name up there with Bradley Wiggins, Tony Martin, all the big champions.”
Porte follows in the footsteps of Sky teammate Wiggins, who won the race last year before going on to win the Tour de France. However, after coming relatively late into professional cycling, he ruled out any likelihood of becoming a main contender on the Tour later this year.
“I’m still doing my apprenticeship, I’m still learning from Bradley and Chris Froome, so I don’t expect to go to the Tour and ride for general classification,” Porte said.
“I’m in a good place at the moment and don’t really want to change anything. Whatever happens, we’re going to have a hell of a team for the Tour de France,” he added.
Talansky was 32 seconds behind Porte overnight, but the Garmin-Sharp rider slipped further behind to finish 55 seconds adrift in the final standings.
He is to ride in his first Tour de France later this year and is targeting a top-10 finish.
Garmin-Sharp team manager Jonathan Vaughters, a former Tour rider, thinks Talansky’s raw ability and attitude can take him far.
“Andrew is an amazing talent, but not in a calculated way,” Vaughters said in an e-mail. “He’s emotional and he pushes himself harder than any cyclist I’ve seen. That’s why I nicknamed him ‘pit bull.’ Once he latches his jaws onto something, he isn’t letting go. Ever.”
French rider Jean-Christophe Peraud finished third overall, 1:21 behind, despite coming off his bike, and US cyclist Tejay van Garderen was 1:44 back in fourth spot.
Tirreno-Adriatico
AP, CHIETI, Italy
Joachin Rodriguez won the fifth stage of the week-long Tirreno-Adriatico on Sunday with an attack on the short, but steep finishing climb, while Chris Froome took the overall lead.
Rodriguez, a Spaniard with the Katusha team and runner-up in last year’s Giro d’Italia, clocked 6 hours, 6 minutes, 43 seconds in the marathon-like 230km from Ortona to Chieti.
Dutch rider Bauke Mollema finished second, eight seconds behind, and Spanish standout Alberto Contador crossed third with the same time in a group that also featured Froome, who was sixth.
In the overall standings, Froome holds a 20-second lead over Contador, with Italy’s Vincenzo Nibali third, also 20 seconds back.
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before
Brighton & Hove Albion’s Jack Hinshelwood on Monday sealed a dramatic 3-2 victory against Liverpool to leave the English Premier League champions without a win since clinching the title. Arne Slot’s side took the lead through Harvey Elliott’s early opener before Yasin Ayari equalized at the American Express Stadium. Dominik Szoboszlai restored Liverpool’s advantage just before halftime, but Brighton staged a late fightback as Kaoru Mitoma leveled before Hinshelwood came off the bench to net with his first touch. Liverpool have taken just one point from their three matches following the title-clinching rout of Tottenham Hotspur on April 27. The Reds have lost at
Logan O’Hoppe, Taylor Ward and Matthew Lugo homered, and the Los Angeles Angels spoiled Clayton Kershaw’s season debut, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-9 on Saturday night to take the first two games of the three-game series. Kershaw allowed three runs and threw 38 pitches in the first inning. The three-time National League Cy Young Award winner lasted four innings, giving up five runs on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts. Shoulder, toe and knee injuries limited Kershaw to seven games last season, and his 2025 debut was delayed as he recovered from multiple offseason surgeries. O’Hoppe had two hits with
RSS